The veterinary team of Terra Natura Benidorm has managed to save one of the ocelots that were born in the park in November 2018. The specimen suffered several tears in the left forelimb, with multiple fracture of the bones of the leg. Although the injury was very complicated, veterinarians have managed to avoid amputation by performing continuous cures until tissue regeneration and healing.

The ocelots (Leopardus pardalis) are nocturnal and solitary species. The breeding pair is usually related only to courtship and mating, and the upbringing is left exclusively to the mother. The males can get very territorial even with the young, whether or not they are theirs, and this was the case of Enzo (the breeding male born in November), who was bitten in the leg by his father.

After the first radiographic exploration, the Terra Natura Benidorm veterinarians decided to do a cure every two days, applying antibiotics to control the infection and facilitate the regeneration of the tissues, plus a bandage. Specialist orthopaedists discarded the surgery and decided to immobilize the limb using bandages. 15 days later, the infection was controlled and started the regeneration of the tissues. After two months of treatment, the evolution is favourable and the animal has recovered considerably his leg.

The veterinary team of Terra Natura has highlighted the work done in this treatment due to the nature of the injury. In the natural environment he wouldn´t have survived. This circumstance has made possible to obtain very useful scientific data on the regeneration of tissues in felines. Currently, Terra Natura Benidorm has four ocelots: the breeding pair, composed by the female, Selha, and the male, Ahmun, both 17 years old, and the two young, Zoe and Enzo (female and male respectively), of 8 months old.

Although they were widely hunted for their fur and captured as a pet almost until the extermination, their populations have recovered thanks to the conservation measures adopted and are now out of danger. Even so, its main threats are the loss and fragmentation of its habitat, and the illegal trade of species or parts of its body.